Foothill-De Anza Community College District chancellor retiring next summer

The Foothill-De Anza Community College District will soon lose its leader when chancellor Linda Thor retires in 2015.

Thor announced her retirement to the district of board of trustees and in an email to district colleagues on Dec. 2. Thor has been with the district since February 2010 and plans to retire this coming summer.

Thor took over as the district’s leader when Martha Kanter left the district in 2009 to take a position as President Barack Obama’s Under Secretary of Education. Thor was the top finalist after a thorough nationwide search later that year.

Before coming to Silicon Valley, Thor was president of Rio Salado College in Arizona for nearly 20 years. Before that, she spent more than four years as president of West Los Angeles College.

In her email, Thor mentioned she will be returning home to Phoenix, Ariz., with her husband after retirement. She also mentioned she will give her full attention to district business and when the district begins its quest to find her successor.

Thor stated in the email that the district’s acquisition of the Onizuka property, a new education center slated to open in 2016, the district’s perseverance through difficult budget times, and more online class offerings were some of the highlights during her time with the district.

Thor is a native of Southern California and earned a bachelor’s degree as well as her education doctorate degree in community college administration from Pepperdine University. She also earned a master’s degree in public administration from California State University-Los Angeles.

The Foothill-De Anza Community College District is home to Foothill College in Los Altos Hills and De Anza College in Cupertino. The more than 50 year-old district serves the communities of Cupertino, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Stanford, Sunnyvale, and parts of San Jose.

For more information about the district, visit fhda.edu.